TYPE
Electric Hollow Body Single cutaway Thinline Archtop guitar
FEATURES
The headstock of Golden Hofners built from November 1959 until January 1960 feature a distinguished white line edge decoration. On Golden Hofners built from May 1960 until the end of production, the white line on the headstock is missing.
The brown binding is only to be found on Golden Hofners which were produced before May 1960. After this date all Golden Hofners had white perloid binding.
Hofner used brown pearloid for the soundhole binding of Series 1. The second series of the Golden shows white pearloid binding around the soundhole.
Hofner used brown pearloid for the soundhole binding of Series 1. The second series of the Golden shows white pearloid binding around the soundhole.
The heel caps installed on the first series guitars were made of the same brown pearloid material used for the striking binding of this guitar. The heel caps of the second series were made of white pearloid.
Solid spruce top, flamed maple back and sides, an eleven-piece neck.
Grenadilla ebony fretboard
Early guitars had the Type one ‘Black Bar’ single-coil pickups, later guitars had the single coil “Diamond Logo” single coil or twin coil ‘Super’ Type 511 pickups. The majority were fitted with Type 2 ‘Toaster’ pickups.
The Golden Höfner had a trussrod.
The ‘Escutcheon’ type tailpiece is ornately engraved and gold plated.
The machine heads of the Golden were enclosed type throughout the whole production period.
INFORMATION
The Golden Hofner was in the Selmer catalogues between 1959 and 1962. Less than one hundred were produced, of which approximately seventy were a mixture of acoustic and electric standard body guitars, and up to twenty five or so were electric Thinline bodies. The Golden was only supplied to the UK market, and was distributed by the Selmer London company.
Only a blonde finish was available, and all metalwork was gold plated.
The Golden Höfner looks similar to the Committee, but the Committees had a 17.5″ wide body, and its back and sides are almost always birdseye maple. The Committee doesn’t have gold plating, the eleven piece neck, and the large amount of decorations.
